The Henry Hunt House on Webster Road in Enfield, Massachusetts, on October 31, 1928. Image courtesy of the Metropolitan District Water Supply Commission, Quabbin Reservoir, Photographs of Real Estate Takings.
The scene in 2024, in the modern-day town of Ware:
This house, located on Webster Road in the town of Enfield, Massachusetts was the home of Henry H. and Harriet R. Hunt. Based on its architecture, it appears to have been constructed sometime around the late 18th or early 19th centuryies. The Hunts purchased the house from Eugene Tuttle in 1902, and the 35-acre property included the 1 ½ story Cape and a shed, as shown in the top photo. The barn and garage for the farm were located across the street from his home on a separate 38-acre lot.
The home’s location inside what would become the Quabbin Reservoir watershed was soon to be problematic. Hunt farmed the property until selling it to the Massachusetts Metropolitan District Water Supply Commission in May of 1938. He would receive $5,130 for the sale of both of his properties. The home and outbuildings were torn down soon after, and cellar holes filled in. Although the home was well above the reservoir’s waterline, it was deemed necessary to tear down because the home and outbuildings were located inside the reservoir’s watershed.
The first photo was taken on October 31, 1928. The garage and barn would have been located just outside the photo on the left. The site today looks much different. Hunt’s backyard fields have been filled in with trees, and the stonewall has collapsed in sections. The home’s foundation and filled in cellar hole is barely visible below the large fallen tree in the center of the photo. Foundations for the garage and barn can still be seen across the street underneath heavy brush.